BRANN
Brann is a youngling boy of a long ago time which was (perhaps) somewhat more adventurous than our own.
Dunnottar, where Brann lives, is a pretty special place even today. It was different back then, fifteen hundred years ago, give or take a few, but has kept its special appeal the whole way through lots of times and plenty of changes.
This book, and the upcoming ones, will bring us closer to the Younglings of Dunnottar. We met them in the Mamm Books of the 'They Are My Song' series. The Younglings have wanted some books 'of our own' for the sharing of their adventures.
Brann's Kin Cousins - Diann, Corrbed, Rua, Merri and Dothann - come to join him on Dunnottar in the next books of this set.
The bigger world has become ever more dangerous. Dunnottar is one of the very few places of safety and peace left ... and so the parents of the Kin Cousins bring this handful of younglings to Dunnottar for safety and for education.
Brann has some wonderful adventures of his own in this the first book of the Kin Cousin set, before the arrival of the others.
He is very young; Diann, the first of the cousins to arrive, shows up when Brann is only four but his imagination is already taking him on adventures.
He meets unexpected friends in unexpected places in between living his ordinary life.
Hmmm ... maybe 'ordinary' isn't the right word to use ...
You'll see what I mean as you read these books!
Diann comes to join her Kin Cousin Brann at his home on Dunnottar for two reasons.
One is that she will become a Healer when she grows up, returning to her own people to help them.
The second is for her own safety. Her homeland has become dangerous; Dunnottar is one of the few places remaining where there's even a hope for peace, and so Diann's parents bring her to us.
We have already met the Younglings of Dunnottar in the Mamm Books of the series 'They Are My Song' - but, you know, the Younglings want their own books for their adventures ... and they can be quite very persuasive!
Still to come are Corrbed, Rua, Merri and Dothann.
'Diann' opens with Brann, still alone, having a bit of an adventure of his own. Then Diann gets there to keep him company.
This little book begins to hint at the struggles of the Kin Cousins to not only adjust to coming to a new home but to the hardest part of all ... knowing that their own families are going back into danger, without them.
The world of the 480s CE was not exactly safe. If you're a history buff you know what was going on in Europe at the time. It was in chaos with populations on the move, people's vying for territory as the Western half of the Roman Empire falls. And the families of our Kin Cousins are right smack in the middle of it all.
Yet our Kin Cousins must not only survive, they must become strong enough to carry on their young shoulders a responsibility for which they are (luckily) well suited. These Younglings of Dunnottar are a darned special group of kids and that's a good thing - because they must preserve and protect an important Legacy when they grow into their adult years.
Life can be difficult at the best of times, let alone the worst.
Still, with humor, loyalty, determination, and each other, the Younglings of Dunnottar make the most of their natural gifts and their imaginations to get them through some almighty interesting adventures.
At the beginning of this book he has not yet arrived. Diann and Brann find themselves with an unexpected day off from lessons and spend it with a most unusual friend - having a most unusual adventure.
Corrbed's education is only part of why he studies so hard. He also needs to keep his mind off of missing his family and worrying about what they might be going through. Andorra is surrounded, in the 480s CE, by warfare and strife. He knows full well that he is not on Dunnottar simply to get an education. He is here because his home is not safe and Dunnottar is one of the few peaceful places in his world.
A physically strong boy, Corrbed takes that strength for granted and concentrates on learning everything he needs to know RIGHT NOW. He wants to get back to his own people and start teaching the younglings there.
A game of 'Treasure Hunt' reveals more treasures than any of the three Kin Cousins expected ...
And then they're off on a rather studious adventure, finding themselves in a peculiar situation as they 'play pretend' in their very own clearing in the Forest.
Mm-hmm ... it's amazing where we can go in our minds when we put our imaginations to work!
Rua's arrival on Dunnottar is close on the heels of Corrbed's and the story that we are not told of this little redheaded four year girl is likely to make us weep.
She comes to us in a different manner than the other Kin Cousins and we don't really have to ask why; not when we take into consideration what was going on in the world in the 480s CE, fifteen hundred years ago, give or take a few.
Ah, but before we tackle our tears, we get to laugh as Diann, Corrbed, and Brann fill us in on what travel with Odysseus is really like! Their sea journey is not boring by any means. They have to get halfway around the world and a thousand years from where they start out - and they have to do it in time to get home for supper.
These three Kin Cousins are there for one another and they are equally there for Rua when she needs them to help her through a very rough patch.
The dark edges start to show in this little book of the Younglings of Dunnottar - but just as important as the darkness is the light. Our Younglings must learn to find their balance.
Rua's a powerfully strong little girl for someone her size, and quick as quick can be. She takes her Kin Cousins along with her on some fearsome and strange adventures, starting in this book.
Yet for all her rambunctious ways, our Rua has a tenderness that she can't quite always hide. It makes for a more complicated Character than you'd expect to find in a four year old and that's a fact.
Then again, none of the Younglings of Dunnottar are exactly ordinary.
MERRI & DOTHANN
Merri and Dothann come to us on Dunnottar in the year 487 CE to complete the core group of our Younglings of Dunnottar.Before their arrival, their Kin Cousins Diann, Corrbed, Brann, and Rua - who have been studying geography in their lessons - land themselves in a predicament they need help getting out of. Luckily for them, help shows up in the nick of time!
Unlike the other Kin Cousins, barring Brann, Merri and Dothann are coming HOME home. Although they have spent their lives (eleven and seven years respectively) traveling with their parents as they learn and teach on the Continent, their mother Alianora grew up on Dunnottar. She is taking her own family home to her very own house among her very own sisters and parents.
The journey is long and dangerous, although we don't dwell on the dangers. We do, however, get to share bits and pieces of the places they stop at on their way HOME home.
The undiluted joy of their arrival triggers thoughts in the minds of the other Kin Cousins of less joyful arrivals - something they need to work through.
Now that Merri and Dothann have joined us, the Younglings of Dunnottar can and do begin forging the powerful team they are to become.
They start trying to change their world - at least that's what the adventure they get themselves into while discussing world events in their 'play pretend' clearing in the Forest is SUPPOSED to do.
The 'play pretend' doesn't turn out at all the way they thought it would and they are stunned at what really happens.
Some of the darkness of the world they've all had experience with creeps into their spirits.
The Younglings of Dunnottar need to find and be able to keep their balance, individually and as a group. They have a Destiny to fulfill, a Legacy to protect and preserve - and the odds are against them the way it is.
As the darkness threatens, they must find their way to the balance they need.
Fortunately for the Younglings of Dunnottar, the rest of Dunnottar is not lacking in Power and the wisdom to wield it.
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Come with us as we join the Younglings of Dunnottar. We're going to meet the Wee Folk, ride on the back of a giant Wild Cat, dance with the Fairies, rescue a Merling, jump onto the back of a honeybee, travel back even further back in time to meet some important personages, cope with a Sea Monster, get a little training from Scathach (who trains only the best of the best, you know), get rescued by some dragons, run from a thundering herd of elephants (well not Rua - Rua rides), and always manage to get back home in time for supper!
The Younglings have only just begun and it's kind of exciting to get to go along with them to wherever and whenever their vivid imaginations take us.
Hanging out with this bunch, you never know what's going to happen. The world of the Ancients is theirs to come and go in as they please, so be ready for anything!
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